Antifriction device.



A. E. OBRIEN.

ANTIFHIGTION DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 15, 1912,

Patented Dec. 10,1912.

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ADELAIDE ELIZABETH OBRIEN, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

ANTIFRICTION DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec.10,1912.

Application filed June 1'5, 1912. Serial No. 703,797.

- desks, dressers, bureaus, cabinets, and-other pieces of furniture haviiig sliding drawers or other movable members, and has-for its objects to provide thedrawers or other movable members with imprdved anti-friction devices which facilitate the opening and closing of same.

One object of the present invent-ion resides in the provision of a simple and inexpensive anti-friction device of the character.

.described that canbe readily applied to a piece of furniture without the necessity of using nails, screws, or the like for holding same in place.

Sometimes, it is unnecessary to apply antifriction devices for sliding drawersor the other movable members of a piece of furniture at the time it is constructed, but weather conditions, irregularities in the sup port on which the piece of furniture rests, the use to which the piece of furniture is put, and other causes have such effect upon the piece of furniture that it is necessary to apply anti friction devices for the sliding drawers or the other movable members thereof after it has been used for sometime. Ordinarily, it is necessary to. apply antifriction devices for sliding drawers or the other movable members of a piece of furniture while the latter is being constructed, but this invention makes it possible to apply antifriction devices of the character described to any piece of furniture either at the time the latter is being constructed or after the same has been completed. v

Further, the present invention consists of the novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims. ,7

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which like numbers of reference denote like parts wherever they occur, Figure 1 is a perspectiveview of one of the lower corners of an opening for a sliding drawer or other movable member of a 1316060]? furniture, said opening being equipped with anti-friction devices einbody-- ing the presentinvention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a lower 'rear corner of a sliding drawer or other movable member equipped with these anti'friction devices; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a drawer equipped with these antifriction devices; Figs. 4, 5, andfi are detailed views of these anti-friction devices; and Figs. 7 and 8 are detailed views of an alternate form of the said anti-friction device.

The anti-friction device consists of a ring 1 having a pair of oppositely-located perforations 2to receive and afford bearings for the lugs 3, borne by the ends of roller 4 and located centrally of the ends of said roller, so as to form the axis of rotation of said roller. The ring 1 is preferably formed of a narrow band of metal, and preferably of spring metal, though, if desired, it may be formed of non-resilient metal, or may be a casting. When the ring 1 is formed of a narrow band of spring metal, it is only necessary, in order to assemblethe device, to apply pressure to the opposite sides of said ring between the perforation'2, so as to lengthen the distance between said perform. tions su'fiiciently to permit of the insertion" of the lugs 3 011 roller 4 into the same, after which the pressure is released from the sides of said ring, with the result that same resumes its normal shape as depicted in Fig. 4 and thereby holds the lugs 3 in the perforations 2. The perforations 9 are located a little above the middle of the ring 1 so that the periphery of the roller extends a little above the upper edge of said ring and, also,

so that there will be a space left between the, bottom of said roller and the lower edge of said ring, for the purpose hereinafter described. The ends of the roller 4 are pref erably so rounded as to be substantially concentric with the ring 1, and, by thisarrangement, the edges of said roller are prea roller with non-rounded isubstantially vented from cutting into said ring, though t I ends can be used made short enough not to to-uch 'tlreband.

Inorder to apply the' device to a piece offurmture, an opening is l thin band of metal, the loweren'd of said because 'of a space lower edge of the iingl and the lower line member that is. to

when said bore is slightly less in depth than stances,

ring which is the particular end that is driven into-the bore inthe member which is to support the device will, when driven into the bore, trim, as. with a knife-edge, the wallsof said'bore smoothly so that the latter will adhere to the'sides of said ring and thereby hold said ring firmly in 'place in same.

the ringns formed of a casting havinga sharp external lower edge. Furthermore, being left between the the lowerend of said ring can bottom of the bore in the pport the device, 2'. 6.,

of the roller i, be driven into the the width of said-ring. Under such, circumthe lower end of said ring will cut its way into the bottom' of said .bore and thereby form an'tannular groove in the bottom of said bore,.the sides of which groove will adhere to the.lower end of said ring,

thus affording an additional means for holding said ring in place in said bore, it being, of course, understood that said ring would not be driven so far into said bore that the roller would touch the bottom of same, but

that a space would be left between the bot- I .tom of said bore and the lower part of the roller 4, 'so that ;the

latter is permitted to rotate freely. in saidrmg. The hereinabovedescribed means forcausing the said ring to fit tightly in the bore and to beheld therein secure it against falling out of a position in which it is inserted roller downward-i. 6., upside down. i

WVhen the ring 1 is driven .into a bore in the member that 18 to support same, the

former will beheld firmly in place in said bore without the use of nails, screws, or the like, and can occupy either an upright, an inclined, a horizontal, or an inverted position, without any danger of falling or workof the opening in ing out of said bore. v -The devices may be located near the front he piece of furniture in bored in the par-' shown, in the drawings.

This will be partially true even if which the drawer orother movable member 5 ,5 slides and, also, at the rear of said drawer or member, and elsewhere adjacent to said drawer or member. Some o f the various 10- cations in which these devices can be placed aresho'wnin Figs. 1, ings, but these positions are obviously not 'the only dues in which said devices can be advantageously fused. .more'of these devices. may be located in what For instance, one or in this specification is called: the upright po- 7s sition in rail 6, as shown in Figs.-1and 3.

NVhen thuslocated in rail 6, it may be preferable to have one at each end of'said rail (3, although even one at either end will be an advantage.- belocated in the middle thereof, it may be: found necessary toiprovide 1a cleat or rail running longitudinally the length of the drawer and located about the middle of the bottom thereof, which cleat for rail f is not 5 If the device 10- cated about the middle of the rail (Wis to be usedin connection with a slab or some other kind of movable'members, said cleat or 'rail will be unnecessary. One or more anti-frictiondevices may be located in the .side member 7 adjoining the drawer or movable member, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and I fwhen thus located may either be a substitute 'lfor', or an auxiliary of, such device or dexvi'ces located in rail-6 or in the movable member itself.- These anti-friction devices may be placed in the drawer'or movable member itself, in which case the rail i will either roll along the member 8 orride upon the rails 9 or other suitable'surface or surfaces. In Fig. 2 is shown 'two 'illustrativ e locations for these anti-friction devices when home by the movable member itself, one being shown in what in,this.specific'ation is called the inverted position, which adapts 4 the roller 4 to ride upon rail t), in Figs. 1 and 3, and the upper device in Fig. 2 being given'what in' this specification 1s termed thereof to roll along the member. 8 in Figs. -1 and 3, or some similar -member. It will be readily understood that this invention is not limited to the number] or position or location of these anti-friction devices inconnection with any particular drawer ormovable member, but that there may be many variations in the number of these devices used and in their location and position. In some cases, if a device should be cated in such position in the opening in which the drawer or member 5 slides, intermediate the front and rear ends of said opening, that the rear end of the drawer or member 5- would ride over the roller 4, when said drawer or member is drawn outwardlyor moved inwardly in said opening, the rear end of said drawer or member would drop 2, and 3 of the draw-'70 Q If a device inserted in rail 6 s0 of these 90 :the horizontal position, adapting roller 4 110 vmember 5' is depicted in Fig. 2, for the purofl the 'roller 4, when said drawer or member is drawn outwardly, and, also, would bump against the roller 4, when said drawer or member ismoved inwardly. In such cases, it would be preferable and most advantageous to fasten one or more ofrthe devices to the drawer or member 5, instead of locating same in the framework or body surrounding the opening in which said drawer or memberslides.

and, if desired, any numberof such devices may be fastened to said draweror member. One way in which the device may be arranged when fastened to the drawer or pose of illustration. In this. arrangement, two devices are preferably located near each lower rear corner of the drawer or member 5, one being driven into abore in the side of said drawer or member and another bein driven into a bore in the bottom of sai drawer or member, so that the rollers 4 in therings 1 in the sides of said drawer or member will roll along the members 8, and

the rollers 4 in the'rings 1 in the bottom of said drawer, or member will ride upon the rails 9. y y

While it is preferable to provide the roller 4 with end lugs 3 to fit in the perforations 2 in ring 1, yet, it should be understood that said roller may be revolubly supported by said ring in any other suitable manner, such, for example, as depicted in Figs. 7 and 8. In the arrangmement depicted in said figures, the ring 1 is provided with a pair of oppositely-located lugs 10, which lugs project from the inner face of ring 1 into sockets or depressions 11 or the like in the ends of roller i When a piece'of furniture having a sliding drawer or other movable member is equipped with anti-friction device or devices as hereinabove described, the friction which it is usually. necessary to overcome in moving the drawer or member inw dly or outwardly in the opening in which same slides is reduced to the minimum and the moving of said drawer or member is greatly facilitated.

It 'will be evident that these anti-friction devices canbe more easily and more quickly applied to any piece of furniture havin a sliding drawer or other movable mem er than anti-friction devices heretofore known,

and" can be manufactured and applied at'"a relatively lower cost, one-- of the great ad- In order to fas ten a device to the drawer or member 5, the.

vantages of these devices being that the same can be applied to a piepe of furniture without the use of screws, nails, or the like, notwithstanding which they can be located in an inverted or side-wise position. as well as an upright one. Other advantages are that they are-so simple and inexpensive and easily applied that they can be attac led to a completed piece of furniture of an kind as well as to one while being constructed.

While these anti-friction devices are primarily intended for use in connection with sliding drawers, in order to facilitate the opening and closing of same, yet it should be understood that they can be advantageously used for a similar purpose in connection with other articles that are adapted to slide like a drawer, such, for example, as a sliding desk-slab, card-table slab, shelf,

bread-board, 'flexible apron for roller-top desk, and the like.

The device is neat for the reason that the ring 1 is formed of a relatively narrow and thin band of'metal and does-not bear any projections or flanges, as do other devices designed for this purpose. Furthermore it is not necessary to provide a specially. designed angular opening in the memher that is to support thejdevice for the latter to fit therein, as is essential for other devices for this purpose, it only bein necessary to make a relativelyshallow said'member, with an .ordinary bit or other suitable tool,-'for the ring 1 to be driven into same.

When these anti-friction devices are used, it is unnecessary to provide runways for the devices either in the drawer or other movable member of a piece of furniture or in the opening in which said drawer or member slides, as is necessary when other anti-friction devices are used. These devices are simple and easy and cheap to manufacture, becausethey are formed of fewer parts than other devices for a like use. One reason that these devices are so simple and easy to construct is because the ring 1 can be cut from a metal tube and the roller 4: mounted therein in the manner herein above described,'thus obviating the necessity of cutting and bending plates to form supports and bearings for the rollersas in the construction of other anti-friction de-- vices.

I claim:

1. An anti-friction device comprising a resilient compressible ring open at each end, a roller within the ring, one of said elements having openings and the other having a pair of lugs received in "said openings, the ring when compressed allowing the lugs to enter the said openings or to be removed therefrom.

2. In combination with a support having ore in a bore,an anti-friction device comprising a Iatter beyond the bore to frictionally hold ring open at each end thereof, a'roller revothe ring in position.

lubly supported in the ring and disposed so In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my that its bottom is spaced from the inner end signature in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

5 of the ring, the extreme edge of said inner ADELAIDE ELIZABETH OBRIEN. end of the'ring being for driving engage- Witnesses: Inent into the bottom Wall formed by said GEORGE G. ANDERSON,

bore in the support so as to extend in the HARRY H. REISS. 

